Oath Keepers leader pushes to testify publicly before Jan. 6 panel

Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes is pushing for a chance to publicly testify before the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack as it prepares to review the role extremist groups played in the riot.

Rhodes, the leader of the far-right militia group, is incarcerated and awaiting trial on seditious conspiracy charges that carry up to 20 years in prison.

“He’s willing to speak directly with the January 6 Select Committee. He has a few what I consider to be extremely reasonable conditions to be met,” his attorney James Lee Bright told The Hill.

Bright said Rhodes would be willing to waive his Fifth Amendment rights, but he said any testimony would need to be live and in person. He dismissed the idea of a taped interview, fearing the committee would showcase only those moments that “benefit the direction they’re seeking as a committee.”

Rhodes already sat with investigators from the Jan. 6 committee for more than six hours in February.

But Bright said during that interview he pleaded the Fifth to questions about the time period in between the election and Jan. 6 at the advice of his attorneys.

The committee subpoenaed Rhodes last November, noting that he committed to providing security for “multiple scheduled events, speakers, VIPs, and event attendees” in connection with Jan. 6. The subpoena also refers to a video showing members of the Oath Keepers with former President Trump confidant Roger Stone outside the Willard Hotel, where the Trump team had set up headquarters for its post-election efforts. 

The committee did not immediately respond to request for comment.

The panel has a hearing slated for Tuesday, in which it plans to review the role of groups like the Oath Keepers as well as the Proud Boys, outlining any connections to Trump.

“We will be connecting the dots, as people know,” Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), a member of the select committee, told MSNBC on Thursday. “This wasn’t just an event that unfolded. It was planned. Who did the planning and who were they connected with? How did it unfold?”